Introduction

These pages are a guide to the Israel-Palestine conflict. There is a huge literature on the subject, some good and some bad. We refer to the best and have mainly selected material that is freely available online. Most of the important books on these topics are not. So you won’t find crucial texts like Avi Shlaim’s The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World, or Ilan Pappé’s The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine here. But you will find reviews and articles discussing the themes of such major works in these pages. And there is further information about, and reviews of, a large number of books on Israel-Palestine published in recent years on our books page.

There is a logic to our presentation of various aspects of the conflict below, but few texts fit unambiguously into single categories. For example, writings on the Palestinian refugee issue or debate about whether Israel is an apartheid society are also part of the general history of the conflict and the nature of Israeli society. Likewise, questions about the nature of antisemitism appear across a range of subjects from history to BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions).

We have limited the number of articles in any particular section and cross-linked to other sections as appropriate. Suggestions for the inclusion of additional material or issues that should be included are welcome, as is any information about broken links. Contact us at background@jfjfp.com

NB: The usual disclaimer: Linking to an article on this website does not mean that we endorse its contents.

I’d like to thank Amanda Weiss for her enormous help in preparing these revised pages. Clare Ungerson, John Speyer and Antony Lerman commented on various sections in draft. Arthur Goodman provided material on the new historians. And Vivien Lichtenstein subbed the whole lot, eliminating hundreds of typos and inconsistencies in the process, and forced me to clarify the text again and again. I believe that all opinions expressed in the introductions and commentaries on articles are all in line with, and in the spirit of, the dominant ideas and opinions of Jews for Justice for Palestinians as developed since 2002. But, the final formulations are mine and I take full responsibility for them.